The Wisdom Of Hesse's Narcissus and Goldmund - Pick a path, pay the price, live the life!
Nov 21, 2025
Explore the contrasting lives of Goldmund and Narcissus, two characters who represent the choice between sensory experience and intellectual contemplation. Discover how Goldmund's adventurous spirit clashes with Narcissus’ desire for inner peace. Delve into the idea that achieving psychic wholeness is impossible, emphasizing the importance of embracing life's trade-offs. Reflect on how choosing a path in life means letting go of others, and learn about the struggle to integrate opposites, inspired by Jung's concepts. Embrace life's sacrifices and its illuminating possibilities!
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Wholeness Is Outside Human Life
- Hermann Hesse argues full psychic wholeness is unattainable because life demands commitments that exclude alternatives.
- Living fully always means living partially: choosing one mode (mind or body) closes off the other.
The Mind Requires Withdrawal
- Narcissus embodies the life of the mind which requires withdrawal, stillness, and freedom from worldly perturbations.
- This inner stability demands closure to risk, passion, and the open-ended flux that feeds artists.
Permeability Fuels Artistic Life
- Goldmund represents the life of the body and must remain permeable to experience to create and feel deeply.
- That openness brings vulnerability to pain and loss but is essential for artistic transformation.
